If AFL wants to win the hearts of the League states it needs harder hits

Basically the Eastern Seaboard of Australia likes to see people getting pummeled. This is from a diet of Rugby League and Rugby Union that the sporting fans in Queensland and New South Wales are brought up on. It seems to me that the AFL would do well to try and introduce or allow some harder tackling to try and attract the thuggish brutes like my self that originate from outside the borders of Mexico (For the uninitiated Victorians New South Welshman offer refer to Victoria as Mexico).

I read today that they are introducing a new rule (or really a new interpretation)

■ Not punishing players for high contact against an opponent if they were going for the ball, or if the contact was beyond their control.

To me this seems like a good start, but I don't think it goes far enough. I'm not sure whether a rule change or an interpretation change is required but I say if you've got the ball you should be fair game for any clean hit. If you're carrying the ball someone should be able to pick you up and dump you on your arse! Basically they need to change the interpretation of a legal hit to basically cover what you can do in a game of Rugby Union (I say Union because I dislike shoulder charges in League that seem to be more aimed at maiming than stopping a players momentum).


The off the ball rules are good as they stand and probably don't need to be changed, just ball in hand tackling could be intensified. And for all the naysayers that say you don't know where the tackle is coming from like you do in League and Union then I challenge you to go out and play a game of Union or League you don't always know where the tackle is coming from but if you have the ball you expect to get tackled, its that simple! Further to the point, there is a lot of off the ball stuff in AFL where you don't know where the hip check is coming from and all the players seem to handle that pretty well.

The AFL purists won't like the change, but it would make the game more compelling to the brethren from North of the border.